{{short description|American not-for-profit executive}} {{Infobox person | name = Jay Feinberg | image = Jay Feinberg Gift of Life CEO.jpg | honorific_suffix = Lh.D, hc | birth_place = Nyack, New York | alma_mater = Dickinson College | boards = Gift of Life Marrow Registry | occupation = Bone Marrow Registry Founder and CEO }} '''Jay Feinberg''' (born August 1968 in New York City) is a long-term leukemia survivor, community organizer and founder and current CEO of the Gift of Life Marrow Registry.
==Leukemia, and search for a donor== Raised in West Orange, New Jersey,<ref name=NYT1991/> Feinberg graduated in 1986 from Saddle River Day School<ref>[https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/bergen/ridgewood/2016/10/20/swab-mob-group-helps-to-save-lives-in-saddle-river/93057256/ "'Swab Mob' group helps to save lives in Saddle River"], ''The Record'', October 20,2016. Accessed August 13, 2024. "The event was inspired by Gift of Life Founder and CEO Jay Feinberg, who graduated from Saddle River Day School in 1986."</ref> and in 1990 from Dickinson College (Carlisle, PA). He was a 22-year-old foreign-exchange analyst for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in 1991, just starting law school when he was diagnosed with leukemia and told that a bone marrow transplant was his only hope.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-column-cohen-donor-idUSTRE76C6KZ20110713|title=Cancer battle spurs entrepreneur to start donor registry|date=2011-07-13|work=Reuters|access-date=2019-10-01|language=en}}</ref> A matching donor was not found in Feinberg's immediate family. Knowing that tissue type is influenced by one's ethnic background - inherited like eye color, his friends and relatives widened their search to the unrelated population, focusing on increasing the representation of Ashkenazi Jews.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/judystone/2015/09/18/world-bone-marrow-donor-day-give-the-gift-of-life/|title=What You Need To Know On World Bone Marrow Day|last=Stone|first=Judy|website=Forbes|language=en|access-date=2019-10-01}}</ref>
Feinberg's plight, along with that of Mario Cooper, a graphic design artist, and Erskine Henderson, an attorney at Skadden Arps, was featured in a 1991 article in ''The New York Times''.<ref name=NYT1991>{{cite web |title=Day of Hope for Those Dying of Leukemia (Published 1991) |website=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/16/nyregion/day-of-hope-for-those-dying-of-leukemia.html}}</ref> Massive screenings were organized in Jewish communities throughout North America and Israel. In addition, screenings were held in Belarus (by Arnie Draiman and Bill Begal), Australia and South Africa.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.acor.org/leukemia/storydir/feinberg-art1.html |title=Jay Feinberg's Story |access-date=2011-01-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101225142337/http://www.acor.org/leukemia/storydir/feinberg-art1.html |archive-date=2010-12-25 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
By 1995, more than 55,000 people had been tested.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.jns.org/growing-gift-of-life-foundation-keeps-moving-forward/|title=Gift of Life Marrow Registry keeps moving forward|last=Holt|first=Faygie|date=2018-12-25|website=JNS.org|language=en-US|access-date=2019-10-01}}</ref> Feinberg's condition was rapidly deteriorating and only a partial match had been found. A friend in Milwaukee organized one last drive and teenager Becky Faibisoff, a 16-year-old girl from Illinois,<ref name=":0" /> was found to be a match. Feinberg received his successful transplant at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WA.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.hbssouthflorida.org/s/1738/cc/index2.aspx?sid=1738&gid=20&pgid=32440|title=Jay Feinberg|website=www.hbssouthflorida.org|language=en|access-date=2019-10-01}}</ref>
==The Gift of Life Marrow Registry== Feinberg is the founder and CEO of the Gift of Life Marrow Registry<ref name=":0" /> which seeks to increase ethnic diversity in the global donor pool to increase the chances patients will find a genetic match. The recruitment model Feinberg created for increasing the representation of Jewish donors in the registry during his own donor search has since been replicated to help increase representation of donors of African America, Hispanic, Asian and Native American backgrounds.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.aepi.org/2017/10/06/fridaypiday-jay-feinberg-dickinson-1990/|title=FridayPiday: Jay Feinberg (Dickinson, 1990)|date=2017-10-06|website=AEPi|language=en-US|access-date=2019-10-01}}</ref>
Feinberg helped the organization to become a world leader in its field.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://thecharlesbronfmanprize.org/recipient/jay-feinberg/|title=Jay Feinberg|website=The Charles Bronfman Prize|language=en-US|access-date=2019-10-01}}</ref>
==World Marrow Donor Association== In 2024, Feinberg was elected President of the World Marrow Donor Association. He assumed office on January 1, 2025.
==Awards== * In 1999, Feinberg was awarded the Hadassah International’s Citizen of the World Award.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://werepair.org/jewish-community-hero-of-the-year-jay-feinberg/|title=Jewish Community Hero of the Year: Jay Feinberg|date=2010-11-10|website=Repair the World|language=en-US|access-date=2019-11-20}}{{Dead link|date=November 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.giftoflife.org/page/content/awards-honors|title=Awards and Honors|website=www.giftoflife.org|access-date=2019-11-20}}</ref>
* In 2005, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Yeshiva University,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://spider.mc.yu.edu/news/articles/article.cfm?id=101083 |title=Yeshiva University website |access-date=2007-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070219020426/http://spider.mc.yu.edu/news/articles/article.cfm?id=101083 |archive-date=2007-02-19 |url-status=dead }}</ref> along with Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
* In 2010, he was awarded the Jewish Community Hero Award for his inspiring service to both the Jewish community and all those in need of bone marrow transplants by Jewish Federations of North America.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.jewishfederations.org/index.aspx?page=1 |title=The Jewish Federations of North America |access-date=2010-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101111143618/http://www.jewishfederations.org/index.aspx?page=1 |archive-date=2010-11-11 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* In 2013, Feinberg was named one of the top one hundred individuals who have positively influenced Jewish life this past year for innovation by [http://www.algemeiner.com/2013/04/24/jewish-100-jay-feinberg-innovation The Algemeiner Jewish 100].
* In late 2013, Feinberg received the prestigious [http://blogs.rj.org/rac/2013/12/12/jay-feinberg-receives-eisendrath-bearer-of-light-award-at-72nd-urj-north-american-biennial/ Eisendrath Bearer of Light Award]{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017010658/http://blogs.rj.org/rac/2013/12/12/jay-feinberg-receives-eisendrath-bearer-of-light-award-at-72nd-urj-north-american-biennial/ |date=2015-10-17 }}, the highest honor bestowed by the [http://urj.org/ Reform Movement].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wrj.org/biennial-and-assembly-awards-acknowledge-outstanding-contributions-jewish-life|title=Biennial and Assembly Awards Acknowledge Outstanding Contributions to Jewish Life|date=2013-12-15|website=Women of Reform Judaism|language=en|access-date=2019-11-20|archive-date=2015-09-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923191536/http://www.wrj.org/biennial-and-assembly-awards-acknowledge-outstanding-contributions-jewish-life|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*In 2016, Feinberg was awarded the Community Leadership Award at Areyvut’s Fifth Annual Bergen County Breakfast for his service and leadership.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.areyvut.org/2016/03/jay-feinberg-to-receive-community-leadership-award/|title=Jay Feinberg to Receive Community Leadership Award|date=31 March 2016 |language=en|access-date=2019-11-20}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://es.giftoflife.org/posts/post/77dea3d0-98dd-4578-84f3-a2c710f8fbc1|title=Areyvut honors Gift of Life CEO Feinberg with 2016 Community Leadership Award|website=es.giftoflife.org|access-date=2019-11-20}}</ref> <gallery> Jay_A_Feinberg.jpg|Jay Feinberg, 2016 </gallery>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.giftoflife.org/ Gift of Life Marrow Registry] *[https://www.giftoflife.org/media/videogallery Videos about Gift of Life and Jay Feinberg] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070219020426/http://spider.mc.yu.edu/news/articles/article.cfm?id=101083 Yeshiva University Honorary Doctorate] *[http://www.jewishsf.com/content/2-0-/module/displaystory/story_id/20940/edition_id/431/format/html/displaystory.html 1995 Article detailing Jay's fight with Leukemia] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070929102746/http://www.hadassahinternational.org/default.asp?section=ac&Subsection=pc&BegOrder=31 Hadassah International World Citizen Award] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070213041639/http://www.marrow.org/ABOUT/NMDP_Awards/Allison_Atlas_Award/index.html National Marrow Donor Program Allison Atlas Award] *[http://www.thecharlesbronfmanprize.com/recipients/jay-feinberg Inaugural recipient of the Charles Bronfman Prize] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20101111155626/http://www.jta.org/news/article/2010/11/09/2741679/jay-feinberg-wins-jewish-community-hero-campaign Jay Feinberg Wins Jewish Community Hero Contest]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Feinberg, Jay}} Category:1969 births Category:Dickinson College alumni Category:People from Long Island Category:People from West Orange, New Jersey Category:Saddle River Day School alumni Category:Living people Category:21st-century American Jews